
A
bove the busy build area for Nerdy Derby
was a sign that read Schmücken, which
means “decorate” in German. A young girl built
a wooden car decorated with pink and blue
feathers and silver pipe cleaners. Of course the
car sported googly eyes, as essential as the
washers that served as wheels. She showed it
proudly to her father and then went to the track to
race it against another car — one with an
orange shark fin. Her car sped down
the track and crossed the finish
line first. She held it up in the air
excitedly for all to see. Her car was
both beautiful and fast, but I shared
in the joy she felt for her creation.
There were many such creative ...